NixCon 2025

[infinisil]

Planning for NixCon 2025 seems to have been initiated, let's have this issue to discuss it in general (hopefully later turned into a PR).

[infinisil]

Here's what I know:

• @Lassulus seems to be initiating the organisation
• The #nixcon2025-orga:lassul.us Matrix room is used for discussing organisation
• @Lassulus is proposing to hold it in Switzerland at the venue proposed by @ners for 2024: NixCon 2024 venue proposal: Zürich, Switzerland 🇨🇭 nixcon/nixcon-proposals#4. The local crew was asked about that in the Nix Zürich Matrix room.
  • @ners is happy to help with organisation
• Budget is a concern, there's a budget plan from last year: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1P2ddDFcOpUStXN2mjBLlVgyVKQFxex75InaHgXiZVQw/edit?usp=sharing
• @zmberber is also happy to help, an early decision for the location would be great

This makes me ask the question: Who makes the final decisions for NixCon? It's de-facto official, but not yet properly documented without #22. If official but ownership is unclear, it could be up to the @NixOS/steering to either decide or delegate.

Also ccing @zimbatm, @andir, @john-rodewald, @das-g

[zimbatm]

The way NixCon always happened is that somebody decides to step up and organize it this year.

They find a location, assemble a motivated crew, find their own budget (eg: sponsors and tickets), and let's go. For most years, we had to bring our own fiscal host, but since 2023 the foundation can take care of that part.

Then all Andi or I do is make sure they have access to the domain, github, pretix, pretalx, mailing list, etc.

In 2024 we tried adding something more stuctured with the NixCon PL team, but all it did at the end was delay and complicate things. We almost didn't have a NixCon that year because of that. Then @Lassulus and his crew stepped up and threw one of the best NixCon ever. To me this is one more comfirmation that we should empower the people that want to organize it, and stay out of the way otherwise.

Zurich is a location that came up a couple of times, the only real contention we had was the price. I forgot the amounts, but it was something significant for the foundation. Wheras for the other locations, the price could be covered by the sponsors quite easily. With @Lassulus in charge, I'm sure they will find a good solution.

One thing we could do better is document all of this, how to find a location, how to find catering, what process we use to select and balance talk selection and speakers, what are the timelines you should have in mind as an organizer, how to negociate to get lower prices from the caterer, where to get the AV, etc...

[nixos-discourse]

This issue has been mentioned on NixOS Discourse. There might be relevant details there:

https://discourse.nixos.org/t/2025-02-13-nix-teams-gathering-meeting-minutes/60263/1

[infinisil]

A first meeting was just scheduled for next Monday, 2025-03-03 20:00 Berlin time at https://jitsi.lassul.us/nixcon-meeting-location, anybody is free to join!

Also, @fmehta, a professor at OST Rapperswil, who I believe is the most authorative person we're in touch with regarding OST as a venue, just announced that ZuriHac will (as always) be hosted at OST again this year, from Sat 2025-06-07 to Mon 2025-06-09.

[infinisil]

I've opened this PR as a result of the first meeting: #74

While vital local organisers @ners and @john-rodewald couldn't attend this first meeting, a second meeting is planned for Friday 2025-03-07 19:30 Berlin time at https://jitsi.lassul.us/nixcon-meeting-location. I have invited all tentative organisers by email and created an event in the official Google Calendar for it.

[infinisil]

Updates:

• After confirmation by local organisers and official endorsement by the SC via NixCon is official, 2025 organisation and location (OST in Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland) #74, we have all the go's we need to make this happen!

• I've created an initial https://github.com/nixcon/2025.nixcon.org/ mostly from the 2024 version, all organisers have write access. @pinpox and @idabzo are intending to work on the website together

• After getting almost everybody to enter their availability, I've scheduled two weekly meetings for different purposes:

  • Monday 16:00 Europe/Zurich: For local organisation, almost everybody that's local can make it at this time
  • Thursday 19:00 Europe/Zurich: For everything else, most non-local people can make it at this time

  And those who can join at both times can be the bridge inbetween. The events are in the official google calendar, so it's also publicly visible and importable.